Former NBA Player Keon Clark Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison


The once high-flying Keon Clark is headed to jail — the ex NBAer was sentenced on Wednesday to eight years in prison after pleading guilty to weapons and DUI charges in two separate cases. Per the News-Gazette: “I, uh, did a lot of stuff in my past,’ Clark said at his plea hearing in Vermilion County Circuit Court, tears streaming down his face. ‘I have to own up to it.’ The 38-year-old Danville native faced 10 weapons, drugs and driving-related charges stemming from one 2012 case and four 2013 cases. Edgar County Circuit Judge Matthew Sullivan, who heard the case after Vermilion County judges recused themselves, signed off on Clark’s agreement with prosecutors to plead guilty to one count of unlawful possession/use of a firearm by a felon/parole in the 2012 case and one count of aggravated DUI/license suspended or revoked in his most recent 2013 case and drop the other felony and traffic charges. Sullivan sentenced Clark to four years in the Illinois Department of Correction on each count. The terms must be served consecutively. Clark was credited with having served 122 days behind bars on one count and 16 days on the other. Vermilion County Assistant State’s Attorney Sandy Lawlyes, who recommended the two consecutive four-year terms, has said that Clark will have to serve 50 percent of his sentence. Both of Clark’s attorneys — Jim Martinkus of Champaign and Alfred D. Ivy III of Urbana — asked the judge to recommend that Clark be placed at a Department of Corrections-run drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility outside of Chicago so he can continue receiving substance abuse treatment. […] Before sentencing, Sullivan gave Clark a chance to address the court. Clark asked to address the audience, then stood to face his mother and fellow members of the Carter Metropolitan Community Church in Danville. ‘You heard I flipped a car,’ he said, his voice choked with emotion. ‘I (got) stitches — 13 to be exact, and I walked away from it. It could’ve been a lot worse. It’s going to be a lot better.'”